Explore the Sets and Filming Locations of the New Season of Narcos

On Friday, Netflix viewers will head back to Colombia and the world of Pablo Escobar as ten new episodes of Narcos become available for Labor Day bingeing. The second season picks up right where we left off, following Escobar’s escape from La Catedral, his self-built prison overlooking Medellín, but this time production designer Salvador Parra is crafting the period visuals. Parra, who is known for his work on Before Night Falls and Volver, came to the project already well acquainted with Escobar and the cartels from designing the 2005 film Rosario Tijeras, which was set in 1989 Medellín. “I read tons of books about Pablo Escobar and papers that you can find in the libraries in Bogotá and Medellín,” he says of his preparation for Narcos. “We really wanted to make our own aesthetic but have it very solid in terms of research.”

One of his priorities was capturing the look of Escobar’s world, which is often depicted as over-the-top drug lord dens in films or on television. “In a lot of series, all the narcos [from the different cartels] have the same types of houses,” he says. “The Medellín cartel is different. They were local and very humble in a way.” Parra also worked to give viewers a vivid feel for Colombia while maintaining continuity with season one. “I wanted to continue with the aesthetic of the first season but bring in my own research,” he says. “I wanted to give the series the textures I see in Colombia and avoid the look of television—it has to be like a film.”

Viewers will recognize familiar sets, including the U.S. ambassador’s office and the Colombian president’s office in Casa de Nariño, but Parra says that many of the locations are new. He also emphasized the landscape, moving scenes outdoors and onto the streets. “The challenge was to avoid being in tiny spaces,” he says. “For example, we had to build a guerrilla town that the paramilitary tries to burn down. We really wanted to have a spectacular environment.”

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Photo: Juan Pablo Gutierrez/Netflix

Season two of Netflix's Narcos brings viewers back to La Catedral, the private prison Pablo Escobar built for himself as part of a deal with the Colombian government. Production designer Salvador Parra was brought on to capture the look of the chaotic period for the new episodes.

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